


A Night Off

by Bookwormsarah



Category: Ballet Shoes - Noel Streatfeild
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-07-19
Updated: 2011-07-19
Packaged: 2017-10-21 13:27:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/225696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bookwormsarah/pseuds/Bookwormsarah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Petrova, on a rainy wartime evening.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Night Off

**Author's Note:**

> First posted as 'A Petrova Snippet' for Laura Kaye in the Yuletide 2007 Challenge.

Petrova was cold and tired as she scrambled down from the plane. The crowd meeting her were used to a woman pilot by now, but at many of the other stations she was a shock, to be looked at in amazement or horror. Here she could great her friends, catch up with the news briefly ("We lost S-Sugar last week. New crew too." "The airfield was bombed on Tuesday, but they must have dropped duds." "Peters has been transferred and we've got a new 2i/c; quite the tartar") and then hurry away. She was meeting three of the WAAFs at seven, and although every bone in her body was screaming out for a hot meal and a seat in front of a fire, she wrapped her muffler tightly about her neck and waited for the bus to make the journey home.

Hours later (oh she wished she was flying) she reached her quarters, and tucked into a plate of sausage and mash, feeling the hot food bringing life back into her chilled bones. In her room she changed out of her overalls and noticed with relief that she would not have to darn her stockings again. Her room mate Juliet enjoyed sewing and occasionally small ladders and tears would be fixed almost before Petrova noticed they had occurred.

Juliet was on duty this evening, so Petrova hurried down the stairs alone to the waiting girls. Wrapped up warmly, they caught the bus to the small cinema and queued to buy tickets, laughing and shivering as they passed into the steamy heat of the lobby.

"Lets hope Jerry don't come calling tonight, I want to see the whole of the main picture this time." Rose had been thoroughly disappointed on her last visit when the new Humphrey Bogart film had been interrupted by the siren. This time, it was Petrova who was holding her thumbs tightly. She had been looking forward to this for so long, and her solar plexus felt funny. Finally they were settling into their seats and watching a newsreel, a public information film, and then finally the main feature.

It was a clever story, with lots of twists and turns, but Petrova barely followed it. Then, suddenly, a door opened on screen and a young woman tumbled in from the rain, her lovely face pinched and terrified. Petrova felt a familiar rush of love, pride and homesickness. Pauline Fossil, film star, and her sister. It had been so long since they had last seen one another, and the post could never be counted on. Still, when Pauline was on screen, Petrova could see her, and spend time with her, if only for a little while.


End file.
